Accelrys, Symyx planning to merge

Companies make scientific products

Scientific software maker Accelrys announced plans Monday to merge with Symyx Technologies of Sunnyvale in a $173 million, all-stock deal.

The deal adds Symyx products that include electronic laboratory notebooks, decision support software and chemical informatics to San Diego-based Accelrys’ computer-aided design modeling and simulation software.

It is structured as a tax-free merger, with Symyx shareholders receiving 0.7802 shares of Accelrys stock for each Symyx share. That values Symyx at $173 million based on Friday’s closing price.

Accelrys said the deal was driven in part by changes in the research landscape, with more companies outsourcing or doing joint ventures that require more technology to handle the work.

“What that presents is a real opportunity for somebody to help them,” Accelrys Chief Executive Max Carnecchia said in a conference call. “What they’ve been doing for the last 20 to 30 years is not going to get them to where they need to go over the next decade.”

Accelrys shares rose 51 cents to close at $7.01, while Symyx shares rose 99 cents to close at $5.46.

After the deal, shareholders of each company will own about half of the combined entity. Carnecchia will remain CEO, while Symyx Chief Executive Isy Goldwasser will serve in a transitional role.

The headquarters will be in San Diego.

Accelrys said customers of the combined company will include 29 of the top 30 biopharmaceutical companies and all five of the top chemical companies, as well as government agencies and academic institutions. All together, the combined company would have more than 1,350 customers.

Carnecchia said he expects combining the companies to yield savings of $10 million to $15 million, thus boosting the company’s earnings. After the deal, Accelrys said it projects cash reserves of about $150 million and no debt.

“The newly combined company will achieve greater scale by combining resources, capabilities and revenue, creating a more financially stable company,” he said.

Last year, Symyx lost $1.1 million on $105.4 million in revenue, while Accelrys brought in net income of $94,000 on revenue of $81 million for the fiscal year through March 2009.